His answers sent chills down my spine. “You.”
Before I could even let that fully register, fangs protruded from his mouth. He pushed my head to the side, giving him easy access to my neck.
It felt like I was in a dream but, as much as I tried to pinch myself awake, there was no escaping it.
I was convinced that my greatest fear had come to pass. I’d already gone insane, because at that moment, I was a hundred percent sure that I was about to be eaten alive by a vampire.
“Lucas!”
I could already feel the sharp edge of his fangs on my skin when a shrill female voice brought me an unexpected reprieve.
He growled with frustration and roughly pushed me away, causing my head to jerk back and bump against the concrete wall.
I glared every sort of sharp blade imaginable at my captor. So your name is Lucas.
He seemed to be reading my mind, because an ugly frown marred his handsome features.
“Yes. The name’s Lucas, my sweet innocent. Not that knowing that will do you any good.”
“What do you think you’re doing?!” the female voice once again demanded of him.
I strained my neck to see who my savior was, but Lucas was blocking my view.
“What do you think I’m doing, Vivienne?” His chest heaved and sighed as he said the words. He looked just about ready to rip the head off of this Vivienne woman. “So sorry about this, Sofia dear.”
Of course. How dare she interrupt your dinner. Happy birthday, Sofia. You just happen to be the birthday feast.
He looked at me as though I was his ally. “It seems my sister couldn’t just let things be and let me enjoy my feast.”
My heart sank at that piece of information. How could I expect this creature’s sister to help me get out of the nightmare he’d brought me into? Her next words cemented my fears and made it clear that there was no escaping my doom. At least not with her help.
“She isn’t yours to feast on.”
“I found her!”
“You found her for Derek.”
I was already busy musing over what these words implied. Great. Save me from one vampire so that another can sup on me instead. I wasn’t too preoccupied, however, to ignore the change of expression on Lucas’s face at the mention of this Derek person.
“She’s one girl, Vivienne. What harm would it do to take one girl for myself? I always get to keep the lovelies I find on these hunts. Always.”
“You already have plenty of beautiful women in your quarters. You need not keep this one. Corrine made it clear that the young women found tonight are to be reserved for when Derek wakes up.”
Lucas eyed me intently. He was looking at me so closely that I was sure he was already well-acquainted with every single mole and freckle on my face.
I could see his Adam’s apple move as he gulped, deprived of the morsel he was so desperate to have – me. I wasn’t sure what to feel. I was relieved to escape Lucas, but was also filled with dread over who Derek was. There was no guarantee that he would be any better than my current captor.
Lucas once again took my face in his hands and traced his thumb over my lips.
“This fragile little twig couldn’t possibly be the one. I don’t understand why everyone seems to worship the ground Corrine walks on. No matter what that witch says, Sleeping Beauty has shown no signs of waking up any time soon.”
“Derek will wake up soon. The sooner you accept that, the better off we’ll all be.”
“I’m your brother too. Why do you constantly choose him over me?”
“Despite what you think, it has nothing to do with the fact that he’s my twin. It has everything to do with who you are and who he is. I love you, brother, but you must accept that you weren’t meant to rule.” Her words were spoken gently, but firmly, an unmistakable hint of affection coming with every utterance.
I could see the pain in Lucas’s eyes at the bold statements coming from his own sister. At that point, I knew I must have truly gone mad, because I actually felt sorry for him. I knew what he felt, what it was like to have no one on your side.
I didn’t think anyone deserved to feel that way.
“Derek will wake up soon. The sooner you accept that, the better off we’ll all be.”
“I’m your brother too. Why do you constantly choose him over me?”
“Despite what you think, it has nothing to do with the fact that he’s my twin. It has everything to do with who you are and who he is. I love you, brother, but you must accept that you weren’t meant to rule.” Her words were spoken gently, but firmly, an unmistakable hint of affection coming with every utterance.
I could see the pain in Lucas’s eyes at the bold statements coming from his own sister. At that point, I knew I must have truly gone mad, because I actually felt sorry for him. I knew what he felt, what it was like to have no one on your side.
I didn’t think anyone deserved to feel that way.
He quickly reminded me, however, that he was my tormentor and made me completely reconsider my stand in the matter. Whatever anger or sadness he felt, he took out on me.
He clamped one hand over my neck, constricting my breathing. A claw protruded from the thumb he had over my lips and he began pressing the end of it over my mouth. I couldn’t help but whimper as his sharp nail drew a small line of blood over my sensitive lower lip.
“Lucas! Stop it!” Vivienne once again raised her voice in reprimand.
He let go of me, allowing me to gasp for breath. He backed away and stared down at me like I was the most disgusting thing he’d ever seen in his life.
“I’m just trying to help you wake your beloved Derek up, Vivienne. Take this little minx to him and make her kiss the Sleeping Beauty. The taste of her blood just might wake the prince up.”
He began to head for the door, but stopped to glare at his sister before completely heading off.
“Isn’t that how you think all this is going to play out when he wakes up? Just like a fairy tale?”
I can’t express how relieved I felt when he finally left the room. The words exchanged by the siblings remained in my head, but I was too overcome by emotion to even attempt to make sense out of them. My knees were shaking so I gave in and sank to the ground before finally looking up to see what exactly Vivienne looked like.
If I thought Lucas could be beautiful, Vivienne was even more stunning to behold. She was a couple of inches shorter than her brother, but had the same dark hair and pale complexion. Her eyes, however, were different. Against the light in the room, her eyes almost looked violet, with hints of deep purple.She was eyeing me warily, as if I was a heavy burden that she had to bear.“Thank you,” I told her, genuinely meaning it even though I had no idea what she had in store for me.There was a deadpan expression on her face as she looked at me.“Understand, girl, that you are nothing here. You’re nothing but a pawn, a piece used to make the board move. Your best chance at survival and proving your significance is to win Derek’s affections. Considering everything I know about my brother, I’m not sure that’s even possible.”Her words dealt my hope a final crushing blow. She made it perfectly clear that wherever this place called the Blood Shade was, I had no allies. No friends. I had only
Vivienne, on the other hand, threw her arms around my neck, whispering how glad she was that I was finally awake.I couldn’t keep myself from telling her exactly what I felt. “That makes one of us.”And then it happened. I could feel my gut clench in an excruciating twist. The smell was overwhelming – practically intoxicating. When I saw them, I couldn’t help but wonder whose idea it was to bring about this sort of cruelty upon my wake.As my sister stepped aside to allow me full view, I remembered everything. I remembered why it was so important for me to stay asleep.Five beautiful young women – innocents – no older than I was when I became a vampire, stood before me. I could sense their fear and the predator in me was desperate for release. I hated myself for it, but I wanted nothing more than to suck every last drop of blood out of every single one of them.My eyes were glued to the young man Vivienne was embracing only moments ago. There was no question in my mind that it was him
From the Cells, we were guided through a well-traveled pathway across a dark, murky wood, before we arrived at a very large clearing at the center of what seemed like a massive forest. Whispers from the guards who were escorting us to our destination informed me that we were at “The Vale”. I assumed that it was the Shade’s center of civilization.I guess I could say that it was the Blood Shade’s main town, built up of several structures, whose architectural styles were the likes I’ve never seen before – almost like a mix of modern and Victorian architectural design with certain elements that looked like they just popped out of fantasy or sci-fi movies.I was still marveling at the places we were passing by when they ushered us to a place that reminded me of a spa Ben often dragged me to for massages.It was at “the spa” that we were pampered, perfumed, and exquisitely dressed in gowns made of fine silk - the kind which I could only dream of ever affording.We asked several times why w
Lucas chuckled. “This is cruel and unusual punishment, Vivienne. I told you that. Derek hasn’t had blood for the past four hundred years. He can’t be expected to not want to rip these girls’ heads off. Hell, I’ve been feeding for the last four hundred years and I still want to have my way with them.”Derek, still looking like he was about to attack us at any moment, simply gave him a sideward glare before he roamed his eyes toward each of us girls – one by one.“A harem? A hunt? Since when do we have these? Who are these girls and where exactly did you ‘hunt’ them?”Lucas, Vivienne and the other woman present in the hall exchanged uncomfortable glances.It was Vivienne who eventually answered the question. “They’re humans abducted from the outside world. We hunt humans from the outside world to become slaves here, to do the work necessary. Those who prove to be useless are fed on. The choicest and most beautiful among the captives are kept by the Elite as part of what we began calling
What is it with these people and shoving me up against hard surfaces? I was fully aware of the gravity of my situation, and yet that was the one thought that circled my mind the moment he lifted me so that my face was directly in front of his. He had me pinned against a black marble pillar. My back was suffering from the abuse it’d been receiving all night long – first from Derek’s brother and now from him. Lucas was probably right when he referred to me as a “fragile little twig”. It was exactly how I felt, with Derek pinning me there, all my attempts to push him away and break free failing miserably. I wasn’t even sure if he was aware of how strong he was, but he exuded a power that I didn’t sense even with Lucas. I felt like a china doll, as though he could shatter me the moment he wished to do so. Everything about Derek Novak was overwhelming my senses. The feel of his body pressed against mine, the chill of his breath against my skin, the sound of his uneven breathing, the lig
DEREKFour hundred years. Gone. Just like that.As Lucas and Vivienne led me out of the Sanctuary, apparently Corrine’s dwelling place, I couldn’t help but marvel over what they’d managed to turn the Blood Shade into over the past four centuries.Before the spell, the island we’d occupied and called the Blood Shade was nothing but a fortress surrounded by a dark forest with its towering redwoods and giant sequoias.We made a small clearing in the middle of the forest and called it The Vale. That was where we began making plans regarding what the Blood Shade would someday be like. I never thought it possible that the plans would actually materialize, but here it was – right before my very eyes – more amazing than it was in my imagination.As we left the Sanctuary and eventually entered into what was now the Vale, I asked question after question to satisfy my curiosity and make me forget my hunger.Sofia and the other slaves were walking right behind us, escorted by the guards. I was s
Lucas and Vivienne tried to make conversation as we trekked through the dark wood, but I was no longer paying attention. I was too distracted by Sofia, aware of every single one of her actions.She rubbed her wrists even as she observed her surroundings. She was taking in every detail of her surroundings, her eyes showing bright curiosity and mild fascination. Before I could keep myself from doing it, I grabbed her hand, my fingers intertwining with hers.She flinched from my touch. I knew I had no right to take that sort of liberty with her, but I gave myself that indulgence, because I really just wanted to feel her warmth.I could only guess what was going through her mind, because at some point, she squeezed my hand like she did to that other girl back in the Sanctuary. She couldn’t have known how much that meant the world to me.SOFIAHis hand was so cold. A chill climbed from the hand he was holding all the way up to my elbow. I couldn’t understand why he would do that – hold my
When I felt him pull away from me and settle my feet on what felt like hardwood flooring, I dared open my eyes. I found myself standing on a wide terrace overlooking one of the most magnificent scenes I’d ever laid eyes on. It was more beautiful than a painting. I walked toward the edge of the terrace and gazed out. Thousands of glittering stars were peppered across the pitch-black canvas that was the sky. These stars and the full moon’s beams were the only light to grace the landscape. I dared not look directly downward. I preferred not to scare myself by discovering just how high up we were. But I could tell that this was one of the tallest trees on the whole island. A massive sea of black treetops sprawled out beneath me for miles. And looming far in the distance were mountains. Mountains so high that the tops were capped with white. Snow. I could only imagine what everything would look like at sunrise. I drew a breath just imagining how stunning it would be. A cool sea wind w